Friday, December 9, 2016

Well that time has finally arrived - the last game of our year long campaign. Unfortunately, two of our members were unable to attend. Our final game was determined several weeks ago - The Library scenario. And several of us spent many nights making bookcases.

Bookcase and pile of rotting books - Hey, who threw a copy of Frostgrave on the pile? So rude!

Another bookcase and a map table

Another bookcase and a new treasure token

We also set the first three wandering monsters to be wraiths just to make things more interesting. We used the wandering monster number roll of as suggested in the book "Into the Breeding Pits".

And we decided that in addition to everyone bringing three treasure tokens, we all bring three small "Secret Santa" gifts as well to be given out for each treasure a wizard managed to recover.
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The pile of gifts

So we got the table set-up using numerous Dwarven Forge sets, placed all the bookcases, and drew for starting locations.

The table it all its glory

A view from the other end

A view of one room

Another room

The map room

Another view of the map room

Here are two other reports from the same game seen through the eyes of other wizards.

The excitement and dread of going underground had certainly distracted Knabe and Vogel. Between the two of them, they both managed fail casting Raise Zombie, Reveal Secret, and failed one attempt at Brew Potion. Knabe did manage to brew a single potion of Strength and Vogel was able to summon a Snow Leopard to his side which he dubbed Fleck V. Knabe reached into the potion cabinet and gave a Potion of Invisibility to Vogel and Daggit, a Potion of Burrowing to Pilum, and took a Potion of Healing for himself. A fox was taken from the kennel (Spent 10 gc to hire a new war hound) to join the group as they departed their base.

Knabe

Following the old parchment map, Knabe slowly led his party through the ruins looking for a hidden entrance into the underground library of Felstad. It was said to stretch forever under the city and was a maze of passageways and rooms filled with ancient tomes and other treasures. But it is also said to be guarded by several wraith-like creatures that are magically bound to the library.

After removing a few large boulders and other rubble, Knabe and crew found what appeared to be a stairway heading underground. They cautiously moved down until they reached a battered old wooden door. Surprisingly, it was not locked and only required the strong shoulder of Keinegnad to swing open.

Knabe and Vogel both failed at casting Raise Zombie - to the extent that both took a point of damage. Knabe tells Daggit to drink his potion and scout ahead. So with a quick gulp, Daggit fades from view. Vogel asks Pilum to try his potion. Pilum downs the strange concoction (Potion of Burrowing) and finds he is able to walk right through the side of the passage - and disappears. Worried, Vogel thinks to himself, "I hope he found another room, I forgot to tell him the potion has a limited distance." The rest of the party moves deeper into the library and spread out in three directions.

Knabe's merry men (and animals) move out to explore

Faenger spots an urn a top a bookcase and moves to retrieve it. Fleck V, The Fox, and the owl all bound past him and round a corner - never to seen again. Knabe casts Fog to conceal Faenger's movement as he climbs atop a bookcase to retrieve the urn.

Knabe cast Fog as the rest of the warband spreads out

Meanwhile, Pilum has safely passed through the stone and end up in what looks like a small closet area. There is a skeleton laying there clutching an old tome. Hoping it is something valuable, Pilum pries it from the skeleton's dead fingers and places it in his pack. He moves to the door and listens.
The Fog didn't last very long. Knabe tries another attempt to Raise Zombie, and again miscasts the spell, and again takes more damage. Faenger climbs down from the bookcase.

Faenger grabs an Urn while Knabe covers the hallway

Around the corner and off in the distance, Knabe hears a loud whoosh and sees a great flash of light. He doesn't know what just happened but it can't be good. As he is pondering the event, a bolt flies out of the shadows, striking him in the shoulder (10 points of damage). This is followed by a sword wielding maniac moving up to engage him. Knabe manages to easily defeat his attacker and identifies him as a member of Sister Janet's (Sigilist) band. Knabe drinks his Potion of Healing. This passage does not appear to be safe and obviously he and his warband are not alone down here. Not only that, but a sickening sweet smell of roasted meat is emanating from somewhere around the next corner. Knabe falls back with Faenger in tow.

Knabe takes down Sister Janet's Infantryman

(What Knabe and crew didn't know: Fleck, The Fox, and the owl raced through the passageways, stirring up years old dust. After making several turns, they find themselves in a small alcove. On the far side of the alcove, standing on a set of step, is a female wizard. Snarling, growling, and squawking, all three charge forward. The wizard (Sister Janet) calmly wiggles her fingers and throws her arm forward. A huge fireball appears and speeds towards the hapless animals. Scratching and flapping, they try to move out of the way. WHOOOOOSSSHHHH!!! The fireball explodes and engulfs them all. Needless to say, it was not a pretty sight as all three were deep fried where they stood.) (I really dislike Elemental Ball)

Fleck and friends spots Sister Janet - she casts Elemental Ball

Fleck and friends get toasted

﻿Vogel, Uhlmann, Keinegnad, and Bobo have moved down a different passageway and entered a room filled with bookcases....and the sound of loud croaking. "Toads" mumbles Keinegnad, "I hate toads." Vogel cast Fog towards the far side of the room to help cover their movement. They also find Pilum, safe and sound, much to Vogel's relief.

The Doctor's thieving warband members stealing Knabe's treasure
when "Surprise".....or should it be "CROOAAAKKK"

The toads prevent the theft

Meanwhile, Fritz has plenty of targets to keep him busy. He misses a wolf, hits and kills an Imp, and finally kills the wolf.

A view of the action

Uhlmann teams up with Pilum and head towards the exit. As they traverse the passageway, a shadow (Vashta Nerada) oozes through the wall and attacks Uhlmann. Uhlmann swings wildly at the creature but is unable to cause any damage. He does manage to force it backwards. Knabe sees the fight and moves up with Faenger in tow. Together they move into combat with shadowy thing. Faenger distracts the creature just enough to allow Knabe's sword to magically cut through its wisp-like body. They stare as the creature slowly dissipates.

Knabe kills the wraith creature know as the Vashta Nerada

Vogel yelps as an ice toad hops through the wall of fog and heads towards Keinegnad. "Don't mess up, don't mess up" he says to himself as he quickly makes the proper signs and successfully throws a dart of bone at the monstrosity. The Bone Dart pierces the toad's eye, its dead before it hits the ground. Keinegnad moves up and grabs the treasure chest. The other toad apparently hopped out a side door and disappeared.

An ice toad hops towards Vogel

One dead ice toad

Standing in a four-way intersection, Knabe sees a wild wolf prowling in a side room. Be sends a Bone Dart in to take it down. On the far side of the same room, a wraith can be seen floating by a bookcase. In the middle of the room is a treasure. From out of nowhere, Daggit says, "Cover me Uhlmann and I'll grab the treasure". Uhlmann says, "Easy for you, you're invisible." But he cautiously moves forward a bit. Daggit reappears as he is picking up the treasure. He turns and runs as fast as he can. The wraith lets out an ungodly screech, and charges forward - right into Uhlmann. Activating his Gloves of Casting, Knabe successfully cast Push on the wraith. The wraith is propelled backwards until it hits the far wall. Uhlmann runs out past Knabe, muttering under his breath "I need to change my pants".
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Knabe, Daggit, and Uhlmann just after the wraith has been pushed away

Knabe signals recall and casts Fog to cover their movement, just in case. Legio, Pilum, Daggit, Faenger, and Keinegnad all recovered chests, tomes, and an urn. Our best haul yet from the frozen city.﻿

A final group shot﻿

As Knabe looks over the loot, he ponders what to do next. Maybe a retirement is in order. Or who knows, at a future date, he may venture forth again........
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What a great game. As usual, most of the wandering monsters appeared at my end of the table, including two of the three wraiths. But this just made things more interesting.

Knabe finished the campaign as the highest level wizard - Level 34 with Kodak coming in second (Note: as it should be - Knabe)

Time for a small hiatus for this group of Frostgrave players. We plan to start a new campaign with new wizards after the first of the year. Time to start painting a new warband and figuring out what wizard school I'll be using next time.

Thanks for reading along as we journeyed through the ruins of Felstad. I hope you all tune in next year for the new campaign. Enjoy the holidays!!

"I want the job" said the gruff looking dwarf standing in front of my table. I looked up from the meal I was enjoying with my young apprentice Vogel in the local tavern. The dwarf standing in front of me looked like he had just finished a long, arduous journey. His clothing was damp and his boots were caked with mud. But his armor appeared to be well maintained.

Knabe's new Captain

As I assessed the one interrupting my dinner, I could detect the magic emanating from what appeared to be a warhammer wrapped in oil skin slung across his back as well as from several items in his pack. This caught my attention and told me he had been around for awhile. And he probably knew his trade well to have survived and gained such quality kit.

I invited him to sit. "You look a little parched Master Dwarf" and yelled for the barkeep to bring more ale.
"Now what is this about a job?" I asked.
"Word about has it that you are looking to hire a weapons master to train and help lead your warband. I've traveled a far piece to get here - I'd like the job."
"Well, I have been contemplating obtaining someone to augment my band....someone with the requisite skills to increase their fighting skills and overall ability to survive encounters with the creatures of Felstad and other warbands. What qualifications, or references, can you provide?", I replied as I packed my pipe for an after dinner smoke.
"Well, my most recent experience was with an outfit out of......." The dwarf droned on about his skills, foes he had conquered, and how many skirmishes he had survived. The list was quite extensive, as was his thirst. He downed numerous pints of ale. I wondered to myself, why would a dwarf of his skill and experience want to join a small warband rather than a military unit - but was hestitant to offend him. That question could wait until a later day. I was impressed with the dwarf, as was Vogel who hung on every word. And with the warband down one member, I was considering the services of someone to assist with leading and training my warband in martial matters. Then I could focus more fully on my magical studies. I have several grimoires I have yet to open, plus many spells that need additional focus. Plus I would have more time for the continued training of my apprentice.

I decided to hire him as the Captain of my warband. I hoped he would work out well. At least he had one fan - Vogel.

I looked up, "Master dwarf, I'd like to obtain your services. We can settle on the particulars later tonight. For now I assume you'd like to meet the rest of my band. Vogel here will show you to our base."
The dwarf drained his mug, stood up and offered his hand, "I accept, pending our final discussion."
"By the way, what's your name?" I inquired.
"My name is Keinegnad but I am called Keine", the dwarf replied. With that, he and Vogel departed the tavern.

I smiled as I contemplated the meaning of the name. Yes indeed, he would do nicely......

With the addition of a Captain to my warband, I suddenly had a lot of extra time to devote to magical studies. This enabled Vogel and myself to improve our casting of several spells: Reveal Secret, Fleet Feet, and Bone dart. We also decided to dabble into the dark arts and learned how to cast a spell to call an Imp from the demonic planes. While not entirely comfortable learning this spell, it may come in handy to harass or slow an opposing warband (Knabe chuckles at the thought of Kodak being chased around by an Imp).

Remembering how some of his band had been mind controlled during past trips into the ruins, Knabe was able to find an old retired Sigilist who transcribed a Scroll of Dispel for a modest price.

A few weeks after hiring Keine, Knabe began preparations for another foray into the frozen city. Attempts were made to Brew Potions and to scry for clues to hidden treasure (Reveal Secret) but to no avail. Right from the start, it seems fate was conspiring against him. At least Knabe and Vogel were able to call forth their Familiars.

A view from Knabe's end of the table

The chosen day was a bit more chilly than usual and a slight mist hovered over the ground. As Knabe and his party moved through the outer edges of town, one could hear a slight moaning sound as the wind blew through the upper ruins. It raised the hair on the back of Knabe's neck. He wondered if this was a portent of something unpleasant today.
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A view of the center of the table

A view from the far end of the table

The Doctor and his warband

Finding a likely spot to use as a starting base, Knabe arranged his band into three groups. He then scanned around in the early morning light to see what was nearby. Once more he could detect the magical traces of his old nemesis Kodak as well as the tingling that he had come to associate with the Doctor. Their presence in the ruins today might make things a bit difficult.

Knabe's nemesis - Kodak

Right off the bat, Knabe spots a chest nestled inside an old stone arch - and he noticed some of Kodak's henchmen moving towards it. He skillfully draws it closer, and out of their reach, using Telekinesis. He directs Daggit and Faenger (both Treasure Hunters) in that direction (Treasure Hunters) along with The Fox (warhound). Keinegnad and Bobo (Bear) follow behind them
Vogel attempts to cast Leap on Uhlmann (Owl Master) but in his haste ends up burning himself instead. Fleck (Snow Leopard) swiftly moves through the ruins and leaps through the window of an old building.

Knabe's warband

Fritz (Marksman) moves into a covered position and looks across the snow covered ruins. He spots what looks to the The Doctor's apprentice, River, moving across an open area. He takes careful aim and drops her with a well placed bolt. He barely has time to say "Did you see that shot?" before he too is knocked cold by one of the Doctor's Marksmen.

Fritz adds another notch to his crossbow - River (Apprentice) falls prey to his marksmanship....just before he is knocked out

Other members of the warband move forward, trying to stay in cover. Bobo climbs a small cliff and looks up at the top of a ruined tower. Detecting Kodak at the top of the tower, he casts Leap on Bobo, placing him a few inches away from his old rival. Kodak's hair stands straight up as he sees Bobo appear in front of him. He quickly grabbed something off the floor and dove over the edge.

Faenger picks up a treasure and immediately hears the spine tingling roar of a White Ape. The Fox bravely engages the ape to allow Faenger time to drag the treasure out of danger. One treasure chest had to be left behind as two Ice Trolls could now be seen on the other side of a pile of rubble. Daggit wisely ducks down out of sight.

My treasure hunter and some of Kodak's henchmen ponder whether to risk trying for the treasure

The owl was circling around the top of the ruined tower and spotted Kodak feverishly trying to maintain his precarious hand hold. Screeching loudly, the Owl dives down, claws and beak at the ready, to peck at the old wizard. Between the clawing and biting, and the powerful flapping of his wings, the Owl knocks Kodak's from his perch and watches as he falls a good distance to the ground (8 inches and takes 12 damage on top of the 4 from the Owl). Kodak lands like a sack of rotten potatoes. Amazingly, Kodak is still moving and manages to hobble away. That old wizard has some stamina (shows the value of pumping up your health stat).

The owl dives on Kodak

Over by Fritz's body, an Ice Troll appeared out of the mist. Pilum (Ranger) fights him off, and takes a step back just as a wall of Fog appeared between himself and the troll. Confused, the troll heads towards the Doctor's warband. Pilum is then set upon by two giant rats that appear out the rubble. But out of nowhere, he is set upon by two giant rats. They are quickly dispatched.

Uhlmann picks up a bag of treasure and turns to flee as he notices Kodak's minions bearing down on him. He doesn't even get one step before he is dropped cold by Kodak's Marksman and his bag is stolen by Kodak's Thief. Witnessed by Knabe, he immediately prepares to cast Bone Dart. But he must have rushed the casting process for he failed miserably, not once but twice as he used his Fate Stone without success.

Vogel sees Kodak's mangy mutt madly rushing towards him. He casts Bone Dart but the dog jinks out of the way. If magic fails, there's always cold steel. Vogel's training sessions with Keinegnad pays off as he takes the dog down in hand to hand with a single deft strike to the head (pun intended).

Vogel takes out Kodak's mutt

Over by the ruined tower, Keinegnad sees reinforcements heading his way. No problem, swollen with confidence, he attacks Kodak's Treasure Hunter. Even with his many years of experience, and much better weapons and armor, Keinegnad is knocked backwards and is severely wounded. Even his lucky runic rock (Fate Stone) failed to protect him. What evil sorcery could this be? Even with his injuries, Keinegnad throws himself into the rubble to support Bobo. Inside the tower, Bobo has managed to charge Kodak's other Treasure Hunter who is encumbered carrying a large chest. Bellowing out his battle growl, and swinging a huge left claw, he fells Kodak's woman with one swipe. He hears the sounds of several people climbing through the rubble and turns to face the new threat.

Bobo triumphant and Keiengnad moving in to assist

The White Ape takes out Daggit

Having only recovered one of the two treasures, Daggit sees Faenger's exit is in jeopardy from the White Ape. He quickly assesses his chances against the ape - and charges into contact anyway. Seeing Daggit engage the Whte Ape, Faenger struggles with going to his assistance, or getting the treasure to safety. "Thanks Dags", he yells as he make good his escape. Daggit manages to hang on just long enough to allow Faenger to get away before the ape slams him to the icey ground and he loses consciousness.

Fleck leaps through a window

Meanwhile, having entered a nearby ruined building, Fleck spots one the Doctor's treasure hunters dropping to the floor after climbing through a window. With a snarl, he pounces on him. A viscuous fight ensues drawing in Legio (Ranger) and another of the Doctor's minions. While Legio manages to hold his own for several rounds of combat, however Fleck is pummeled to the ground. The Doctor's man grabs a bag of treasure and attempts to flee. Legio is unable to interfere as his hands were full with another of the Doctor's men. He does hear some cussing as Pilum squeezes through a window in the backroom - just in time to hear Knabe's recall signal. Legio gives the Doctor's henchman a quick salute with his sword and exites out the back with Pilum covering his withdrawal.

Hearing the triumphant roar of the ape, Knabe knows it is time to leave. Between the Doctor on his left, Kodak to his front, and the unusual number of creatures roaming around, things are getting a bit too hot for comfort. He casts one more wall of Fog and then signals the for warband's recall. Feeling tired, Knabe turns to leave - a very disappointing excursion.

At the end of the day, all Knabe had to show for his warband's troubles was one measly treasure chest. It did contain 120 gold coins and a Raise Zombie grimoire. At least the grimoire could be sold for a nice profit. The grimoire reminded Knabe that he had received a map supposedly showing the location of the forgotten Felstad library. The library was rumored to contained a treasure trove of information about old spells and forbidden incantations.

Epilogue
Two Ice Trolls, Giant Ape, another Ice Troll, two Giant rats, Large Construct, and an Ice Toad all appeared with within 12 inches of my warband. Fortunately, some of them followed after Kodak's warband. While Knabe and Kodak ended up with the majority of the random monsters in their area, I liked the automatic generation concept. Definitely made things more interesting.

Knabe and Vogel managed to cast eight spells but they were almost all utility spells. The one successful casting of Bone Dart failed to caused any damage.

My expensive Captain did not impress on his first outing....maybe next time.

Well, back to making more books and then some more books for the Library scenario next weekend.